Talking SXSW Blues

Nan Warshaw

Even though the event is a month away, we’re well into the South by Southwest season here in Geezerville. That means more writing, reviewing, and interviews than we do the rest of the year. Busy, yes, but it can also be more fun than a geezer should be allowed to have. This year will be, I think, my 20th SXSW, and reviewing in my head the memorable times, Chicago’s Bloodshot Records seems to pop up quite a bit.

Label co-founder Nan Warshaw and I were both on the alt.country panel in 1997. Their day parties at the Yard Dog Gallery on South Congress have always been required attendance, if only for the drunken finale by the Waco Brothers. I spoke to Nan earlier this week about SXSW, past and present, and the state of her label and the music industry in general.

Geezerville: Are you as excited about SXSW this year as you have been in the past?

Nan Warshaw: I’m excited for the bands. It’s usually so much work for me that I don’t know if excited is the right word.

G: We are veterans at this. How has it changed over the years?

NW: SXSW is a whole different experience for me and, I think, for our bands than it was initially. Early on, we started having a day party because we couldn’t get our bands showcase slots. Then once we did, we didn’t get the sense that we would have good slots. So having a day party was one of the ways of getting our bands in front of more people in a situation we could control. We’re an established label now. So, that’s changed.

G: SXSW has turned into much more a destination for music fans than it was when you started having your day party. I’ve heard from some people that I know in the industry that aren’t coming this year because of the economy. I wonder what attendance will be like this year.

NW: I think SXSW is as valuable as ever for our bands. We’ll see what this year will bring with the world economic collapse. I don’t see any fewer bands going this year. More of our bands are going this year than any previous year. All I can assume is that it will be bands and fans, no industry and very little media.

G: Has the economy made things even worse for labels?

NW: We always thought we were immune to major world trends. Even the serious music fan has been affected by this downturn. It definitely effects our bands. Booking agents tell us that ticket sales are down across the board. The “rising stars” haven’t been effected or maybe they would be doing even better yet. Like our Justin Townes Earle, he just finished a UK tour and all the shows were sold out and he got a ton of press. I’m not getting that from our other bands, who are complaining about smaller audiences and fewer CD sales.

G: How has Bloodshot made it through the downturn when others haven’t?

NW: We’ve always been frugal and never tried to expand in any risky way. All our growth has always been organic and based on record sales. We never took outside loans, we never had outside investors, and so we’re not beholden to anyone else. That’s helped us weather this stuff. I don’t want to say we’re immune. We certainly aren’t. We’re having to work smarter and even more frugally than ever before, but we’re still here.

G: It’s amazing but people are still starting record labels.

NW: Which baffles me. When people ask me for advice on starting record labels, I say, “don’t.” It was hard when we did it. But with the demise of independent retail that’s been ongoing for the past five years plus, then you put a world economic collapse on top of it, I don’t see how anyone can get anywhere. We have a catalog that continues to sell. Knock on wood. But I don’t know how a start-up could make it. It could be a hobby and you could have fun doing it, just don’t expect much more than that.